Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt Cruise - ESPERANZA FERRY

The anchor will be weighed at 6 am and we start our journey through the Patagonian fjords, with a final destination at the city of Puerto Montt.

We enter the Unión Sound to navigate through the narrowest part of the route, only 80 m wide, called “White Narrows”, to later sail through the Santa María channel.

Overnight onboard.

We sail through the Patagonian Channel, Morla Vicuña, Escobar Doxrud Pass, Sóbenes Pass (the southernmost of the route), Unión Channel, Collingwood Narrows, Farquar Pass, Sarmiento Channel, Guía Narrows, Los Inocentes, Concepción, and Wide channels, Paso del Abismo, and Paso del Indio to arrive at the town of Puerto Edén*, where the last population of native Alacalufes live.
Puerto Edén is located on Wellington Island, one of the largest islands in Chile that forms part of Bernardo O´Higgins National Park.

After a short stay in this port (only for residents embarkation purposes) we continue our journey towards the north going through the English Narrows, a narrow pass that allows the passage of only one ship at a time. We continue through the Messier Channel, where we will see the cargo ship Capitán Leonidas, shipwrecked since the 1970’s on a half-sunken islet called “Bajo Cotopaxi”. The wreck is currently used as a navigation lighthouse and point of reference for sailors.

Overnight onboard.

At sunset, we start the ocean navigation in the area of the Penas Gulf, an approximate 12-hour crossing, where it is possible to see humpback, Minke, and blue whales, (depending on the time of year and climate).
At dawn, the Captain will assess the weather information received, and with the information on the tidal currents in the channels and the positions of celestial bodies like the moon and the sun, he will decide the most appropriate route to continue the journey with the following options to leave the open Ocean Area: 1.- Pulluche Channel, 2.- Ninualac Channel, 3.- Boca de Guafo.

There is also the possibility of accessing other channels depending on the visibility and the traffic of other ships.
If he decides the Pulluche channel, the lushest in vegetation (Southern Beech and Patagonian cypress forests), with luck, we will see marine birds, sea lions, and native dolphins called “Toninas”.

We enter the Chacabuco Channel, and then sail through the Errázuriz channel, and finally sail through the Moraleda channel, a transit spot for notable sailors and canoeists from the Chonos and Chiloé archipelagos. If the choice is through the Ninualac channel, we will reach the area around Isla Tuap, later entering the Moraleda Channel.
Finally, if the option is to continue in the open sea through the Boca del Guafo, we will sail amongst the Chonos Archipiélago to continue our route towards Puerto Montt.

Overnight onboard.

Continuing our journey north, we sail through the Gulf of Corvocado, then through the Apiao Channel, Ancud Gulf, and Reloncaví Sound, arriving at Puerto Montt in the morning, the city where this great adventure comes to an end.